Cybrid
The Cybrid were a race of networked artificial intelligences that were developed by Cylon Cybernetics during the Shadow War. They were created to serve as laborers and tools of war for the Crimson Empire. Originally coined name of the new line of droids that Cylon Cybernetics was developing, the first of these projects was the prototype design for what would become the feared Cybrid Armature. However, this design was never classified as a part of this project, considering its vast distinctions from the end result of the program. After the initial success of the Armature-class Assault Droid, the model was reworked, utilizing ingenious engineering tactics to create a new type of droid that was capable of independent thought, but with limitations placed on its AI programming to keep them loyal to their creators. Characteristics Physically the humanoid Cybrid were a warped sense of typical living bipeds - their hands, head shape and legs were similar. They were described as having 'flashlight heads'. The Cybrid were built of two materials, a large durasteel outer shell, and a kind of synthetic muscle tissue that gave later designs their incredible agility. It was notably possible for this synthetic muscle to be grafted to organic tissue. Cybrid "bled" a white conductive fluid when shot, but they didn't have any internal organs or nervous system, so they didn't feel hunger or pain. The Cybrid were also known to use tools and other equipment, and had seemingly modified some standard tools to heal synthetic wounds. Part of the program's success was due to the newly-introduced neural network. The closer Cybrid physically were to each other, the more intelligent each one became. Effectively, they shared their processing power. They couldn't share sensory data - they weren't a hive mind - but in large groups they had more to think with. An individual Cybrid had only a basic intelligence on par with animal instincts, but in groups they could reason, analyze situations, and use tactics as well as any organic race. Combat The key element of Cybrid warfare was surprise. They were described by K471 as the perfect ambushers. Their freedom from the need to eat or sleep allowed them to leave dormant garrison units in ambush at key positions, and the fact they didn't feel pain allowed them to literally drop units from overhead out of nowhere. They could even be packed tightly into crates and left in storage, shutting down their power sources to stay undetected. A tactic particularly favoured was to set 'distress signals' and then ambush the rescuers. When Cybrid shut down, they fried their memory cores as a defensive measure, disallowing successful capture attempts for study. Designs *Cybrid Armature *Cybrid Trooper *Cybrid Shock Trooper *Cybrid Rocket Trooper *Cybrid Sniper Sources The Cybrid are heavily inspired by the geth, and most information is directly derived from the Mass Effect Wiki. Behind the Scenes The name Cybrid derives from a couple of different word combinations. The first is cy'bernetic hy'brid. The other deriviation (though not the original, but more of an "adaptive" version) could be Cy'lon hy'brid. The basic gist of the name is to suggest a hybrid of droid and synthetic tissue. Despite the name's recorded origin in Starsiege, there is no relation between the Cybrid and Starsiege's version, and the name similarities are totally coincidental. Category:Cadden Category:Cylon Imperium Category:Crimson Empire Category:Projects Category:Exodus Species Category:Cybrid